Traders Buy Large Volume of Call Options on Gold Fields (NYSE:GFI)

Gold Fields Limited (NYSE:GFI) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Traders bought 259,847 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 14,531% compared to the average volume of 1,776 call options.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Gold Fields

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of GFI. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its position in shares of Gold Fields by 84.7% during the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 5,549,220 shares of the company’s stock worth $131,350,000 after purchasing an additional 2,545,579 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Gold Fields by 69.3% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 4,384,047 shares of the company’s stock valued at $191,407,000 after purchasing an additional 1,794,124 shares during the period. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. boosted its position in shares of Gold Fields by 39.2% in the 4th quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 6,085,653 shares of the company’s stock valued at $265,700,000 after purchasing an additional 1,714,442 shares during the period. Man Group plc boosted its position in shares of Gold Fields by 63.7% in the 4th quarter. Man Group plc now owns 3,650,799 shares of the company’s stock valued at $159,394,000 after purchasing an additional 1,421,121 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Gold Fields by 32.9% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,919,432 shares of the company’s stock worth $116,443,000 after purchasing an additional 1,217,594 shares in the last quarter. 24.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Gold Fields in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Gold Fields from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Zacks Research upgraded Gold Fields from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Scotiabank raised their target price on Gold Fields from $47.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered Gold Fields from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $44.00.

Gold Fields Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:GFI opened at $50.92 on Friday. Gold Fields has a 1-year low of $19.35 and a 1-year high of $61.64. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $52.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $44.62.

Gold Fields Company Profile

Gold Fields (NYSE: GFI) is a Johannesburg‑based gold mining company that operates as an international producer of gold. Listed on multiple exchanges and traded in the United States via American Depositary Receipts under the ticker GFI, the company focuses on the exploration, development, extraction and processing of gold-bearing ore and the sale of refined gold products. Its operations span several regions, serving global bullion markets and supplying gold for both investment and industrial uses.

The company’s core activities include mine development and underground and open‑pit mining, ore treatment and refining, and ongoing exploration to replace reserves.